


Divine Embers: The Fallen Realm Saga

by SoftLullaby



Series: The Fallen Realm Saga [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), World of Darkness (Games)
Genre: F/M, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Psychological Trauma, Swearing, Tragedy, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-12
Updated: 2017-09-02
Packaged: 2018-10-30 23:45:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10887405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SoftLullaby/pseuds/SoftLullaby
Summary: Elora Panagos watches as Atlantis falls, the Imperium crumbling beneath her former lover's hubris. Death is imminent, and her heart is shattered. All that is left is to pray to the very Gods the Magisters hope to defy. Will it be enough to save her soul?Years later, Orpheaus and his brother, Grimm, seek out the Academy, a prestigious place in Seattle where mages go to learn their craft. Once inside, he senses something, something both terrible and wonderful, something that will change his life forever, perhaps shattering all he thought he knew.





	1. Touch the Sky

**Author's Note:**

> This is a crossover of Mage: the Awakening and Dragon Age. When playing both, it occurred to me that the hubris of the Tevinter Magisters was nearly identical to that of the most powerful mages in Atlantis. Both sought to force their way into the heavens - though in Mage: the Awakening, it's referred to as the Supernal Realm. Both actions would have lasting repercussions. So why not meld the two?

_My heart beating, my soul breathing_

_I found my life when I laid it down_

_Upward falling, spirit soaring_

_I touch the sky when my knees hit the ground_

_-Hillsong United_

 

"Orpheaus!"

 Elora's cries were lost in the cacophony, drowned in the chaos roaring all around her. Flames swirled about her calves, rendering the wooden railing on the bridge to ash even as they licked at the hem of her pale blue tunic. Embers danced upon the roiling wind, a tempest caused by a massive greenish scar ripped into the very heavens. It was as if the sky itself were falling, ash and sediment plummeting to the world below.

 But none of that mattered; Elora only had eyes for the man at the opposite end of the bridge she stood on. The seas around them cried out with the same rage the heavens displayed. That, coupled with the cinder and bedlam, made it increasingly more difficult for her to keep her eyes upon him.

 And then there were the tears which blurred her vision. They had caused an ache within her, becoming a physical longing which burned within her, begging for her to run to his side, yet she found herself unable to move. No matter that her only desire was to race across the bridge, to take him into her arms and beg him to stop this madness. But no, in that moment Elora was powerless.

 Uttering but a single phrase, Orpheaus had prevented her from following. Her whole body trembled as she fought the magical compulsion, fought what the ancient spell-web had done, and yet she remained entirely bound to its will. Those tears which burned within the corners of her eyes finally tumbled free of their prison, blazing a fiery trail upon frozen cheeks. They lingered in her lashes before rolling over her skin, clinging to her chin for a last desperate moment before falling into oblivion. "Orpheaus…"

 It was no cry this time, just a whispered plea. Elora's world was crumbling, a fact she recognized with more finality as he vanished from view. Had he begun his ascent to the heavens? She had no way of knowing; all that was apparent was that she was absolutely alone. He had abandoned her to the mess he'd left behind, and for what?

 To enter the realm of gods, to become a god himself?

 The truth tore at a part of Elora's soul, shredding it. The dissonant cacophony ringing around her distantly echoed with the tumult of the conflagration. Around her, people screamed. They panicked. Some even lept into the sea, desperate to die by their own hand rather than face the tempest Orpheaus and his brethren had wrought. Their pride had condemned them all. Not a single soul would emerge from the heavens' assault unscathed. Not even Elora.

 He had left her to perish. Rending the heavens as he had, forcing his way into a world denied him, had brought upon them this awful destruction - and it seemed Orpheaus had no care for what he had left behind. Elora meant less to him than did the people of the Imperium; they, at least, could attempt an escape. She, however, was frozen, unable to act. She could not so much as move.

 It was her destiny to watch the unholy flames rain down upon what had once been her beloved home. It was her fate to watch as everything she held dear was destroyed. And it was Orpheaus who had decided this fate. It had always been Orpheaus to decide for her. Her life had been his to command, always, and now his final dictate was that she would die in the very thing his pride had wrought.  

 Elora felt her heart shatter into a thousand tiny pieces as she realized he had never meant for her to survive this. When she had loved him, desperately, he had not spared a single thought for her. No other betrayal had ever been as poignant. The agony his actions inflicted upon her burned within her very soul, leaving a lasting imprint. Even should she die and move on to whatever came after, she would never be free of it.

 Behind her, she heard a crash, and she knew that the tallest of the pillars had at last succumbed to its death. It was the same death she felt within herself, and the last ember of hope fled from her. Her eyes closed, the tears long since dry from the intense inferno blazing all around her. With the last vestige of strength she could muster, she lifted her hands and folded them in prayer. Then she tilted her head upright, feeling the heat bathe her skin, knowing that soon it would melt the flesh from her bone.

 She had accepted this fate. In the end, she would burn with Atlantis. In the end, she would be naught more than a memory, just like the glorious seat of the Imperium. The proud spires would fall. Fire would steal everything, a conflagration designed by hubris. Orpheaus' hubris. And it would kill her as surely as it would destroy the city.

 Elora could not ignore the ache within her heart, and yet a strange calm had fallen over her. Having accepted what would come, she was resolute. But she would offer up one last thing, one last prayer, to the very Gods Orpheaus thought to betray.

 And as she opened her mouth to speak, at last all was still.


	2. New Divide

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a crossover of Mage: the Awakening and Dragon Age. When playing both, it occurred to me that the hubris of the Tevinter Magisters was nearly identical to that of the most powerful mages in Atlantis. Both sought to force their way into the heavens - though in Mage: the Awakening, it's referred to as the Supernal Realm. Both actions would have lasting repercussions. So why not meld the two?

 

_So give me reason_

_To prove me wrong_

_To wash this memory clean_

_Let the floods cross_

_The distance in your eyes_

_Give me reason_

_To fill this hole_

_Connect this space between_

_Let it be enough to reach the truth that lies_

_Across this new divide_

_-Linkin Park_

 

God, he hated Seattle.

The heat was oppressive, but that was because of the humidity. It pressed in upon him, draping him like an unwanted blanket. A moist blanket. Overhead, large dark clouds hung heavily in the sky, like water balloons filled to the brim. Moments away from bursting, and they would unleash a torrent on the city below. And he wished for it. He wished it would just rain, because at least for the duration, it would be bearable. Now, though, it was anything but.

"Why the hell are we here again?" Orpheaus groused, shooting a glare at his identical twin brother, Grimm. The blue eyes which glanced back at him were a mirror of his own, albeit far less annoyed.

"Because," his brother answered with a sigh, "Seattle has one of the best places for us to study magic."

"You mean the _only_ place."

Of course, Grimm wasn't wrong, but neither was Orpheaus. Seattle was home to the only organized academy for those who had Awakened to a higher understanding. He and his brother were two such individuals, and they'd learned a long while ago that learning on their own was far too dangerous. That was why they had chosen to look into the school to begin with. It hadn't been easy to find, but neither of them had expected it would. In the end, it had paid off.

And now the brothers were standing on the doorstep of the least impressive building they had ever seen in their life.

It was maybe three stories tall, with boring windows covered with boring white blinds. The red brick was faded, crumbling in spots, with ivy encroaching the majority of the building. There was no sign. Nothing really. And the front door, a wooden thing painted forest green, was broken, swinging on its hinges. This was the infamous academy? This was what the twins had traveled to Seattle for?

"It looks like a fucking crack house," Orpheaus snapped, tugging his hood away from his curly reddish hair. "The only magic these guys know anything about is the shit inspired by their goddamn acid trips. Grimm, this was a waste of time and money."

His brother shot him a deadpan look. "Oh ye of little faith," Grimm grumbled, taking the crumbling concrete stairs two at a time before reaching the top. There, he turned to face Orpheaus. "Since it _could_ be an illusion, why don't you at least give it a shot?"

A shot.

Orpheaus sighed softly, dropping his chin to his chest as he thrust his hands into the pockets of his old, ripped jeans. "Fine," he muttered, following his brother up to the front door. "I really hope you're right."

 

_Something._

_She felt… something. And yet… how was that even possible? Her eyes could no longer see, her body was powerless to move, and yet… cast in prayer-like repose, she felt. She_ felt. _Something within her actually stirred._

_It was as if she could breathe again, but no, that was impossible. What passed for a breath surely must have been an illusion. And yet it felt as if something wonderful had just crossed over an unknown threshold, as if the barrier that had housed her for all of these awful, painstaking years, had suddenly allowed her one chance at salvation - at revival - to pass across._

_Anticipation prickled across what remained of her consciousness, and she felt herself strengthening. A pale phantom, an echo of herself, but now no more. Somehow she had come out of the stupor which had imprisoned her, and coherent thoughts -_ thoughts! _\- were plaguing her mind._

_For the first time in a long time, she felt real. Not entirely whole, but real. She felt tangible, though she still could not move. She was frozen, but her mind was there. Her mind was hers again._

_It was not perfect, but it was a start. She simply had to pray that whatever - whoever - had sparked this turn of events would find its way to her. Hoped that they would recognize that she was so much more than she appeared, that they would restore her to what she once was, or even mold her into what she was supposed to be._

_She hoped that whatever Gods had not been destroyed by the Tevinter Legacy could hear her pleas, silent though they were, and that they would at last deliver salvation._

 

Something.

He felt… something. Orpheaus stopped in his tracks, for a moment forgetting what it was to breathe. Something - no, _someone_ \- was here. They were… are? No, they had been important. It was difficult to think; for the moment he was entirely overtaken by a sudden need. It wasn't something he could comprehend. As he swayed on his feet, his hands reached for his brother.

Grimm was next to him, speaking. _What's wrong?!_ He couldn't hear the words, but the lips moved, and he knew what was being said. It was strange, like being underwater. The need was drowning him, deafening him to the reality of where they were. Who they were. Who he was? It was all a blur, and suddenly Orpheaus knew regret.

Regret for this decision. This terrible, stupid decision. Wherever they were… it was doing something to him. He could feel his body sinking toward the ground, need pounding in his brain like a thousand war drums. He cried out, both hands going to his head, pressing into his ears. _What's happening?_

 

_Breathe, Orpheaus…_

 

As suddenly as it began, the gentle words of a woman brought it to a screeching halt. The need abated, the pounding gone, and Orpheaus was a shaken mess as he recovered from it all. He lay on the ground, panting heavily. After a moment, he jerked himself into an upright position, eyes darting around. "Where is she?"

Moments after the words had left his mouth, he realized that they were in some sort of manor. Nothing about it matched the exterior, and the lone figure standing at the foot of the grand staircase watched them in mute silence. He had hawk-like eyes, his dark brow making up for the lack of hair upon his head. He had a Professor Xavier look to him - rather like Orpheaus would have pictured for the man, actually - but less kindness.

"Who?" Grimm's voice cut through his brother's thoughts, and blinking eyes were turned his way. "You asked me where she was. Who? She who?"

"I…" Orpheaus trailed off, realizing it was entirely mad. He was mad. It had to be some sort of magical illusion, right? Some ward or something, meant to push away the hostile unbelievers. But that couldn't be right, either. That was a woman's voice, speaking to him so clearly. And whoever she was, she'd been able to push away whatever that whole need had been. There was something here, and Orpheaus was torn between the desire to find it and the desire to run away. Possibly screaming.

As he rose to his feet, Orpheaus speared his twin with a look. "We have to leave," he said quietly, " _now._ "

"But we just got here," Grimm responded, furrowing his brows. "What the hell happened? Talk to me, dammit!"

"I don't know." Orpheaus shook his head, looking anywhere but at that man standing at the bottom of the stairs. "I don't know what the hell happened. I only know something is wrong here. Very wrong. And if I stay…"

If he stayed, what?

What would he say? That something in the house meant to destroy him? That it was a struggle he wasn't sure he'd even win? It sounded crazy, even to him, and he bit his tongue. Even so, he couldn't erase the thought that they needed to leave this place.

If he stayed, he knew, without a doubt, that he'd never be the same again.


End file.
